They will get together Friday night to remember and, one hopes, find a reason to smile.

Members of the Sacred Heart High class of 1996 will conduct a brief ceremony at Municipal Stadium before the start of the football game between the Hearts and Whitney Tech to honor the memory of Austin Mordowanec.

A thundering running back with the Hearts in the 1993-94-95 seasons, Mordowanec died in July in a jet ski accident. He was 34. The loss was deeply felt in the Sacred Heart class that numbered less than 90.

"He was a great teammate because he never gave up," remembers Joe Orsini, who got the ball rolling on this week's commemoration. Orsini was one of the men who blocked for Mordowanec on the line. He remembers that his friend and fellow captain, "Played until the whistle blew, and he always had your back."

Mordowanec was a positive force on the field, and in school, Orsini recalls of his friend who moved comfortably among football players, but also served on the student council and participated in the drama club.

"It wasn't just sports for Austin," Orsini added. "He had influence across a broad spectrum in school."

And, Orsini added, Mordowanec was a leader.

"He played hard, so you played hard," Orsini said. "He was a large back, a power back. He liked to run it up the middle. If you wanted to take him on, he was ready for you."

The plan for Friday is simple: Prior to the opening coin toss, at approximately 6:50 p.m., Orsini will conduct a brief ceremony to honor Mordowanec.

"We will have a moment of silence, mention something about his life, and his love of football, and then the class of 1996 will present a memorial plaque to Austin's family," Orsini said.

The class of '96 also hopes to launch an annual scholarship in Mordowanec's name.

"Football is a brotherhood," Orsini said. "It brings you together like a family. We were all in the trenches together, so when we lost him it was a shock. It was like losing a family member."

Orsini urges all members of the Sacred Heart class of '96, or anyone who ever called Mordowanec a friend or a teammate, to attend Friday's ceremony.

Honoring Shellie: Last night the Watertown board of education presented a citation to high school boys basketball coach Ed Sakl in appreciation for the team's remarkable 2011-2012 season, when the Indians won a first-ever NVL championship and were also state tournament Class M runner-ups.

But Watertown did something even better than that: The board also honored a former coach who was there at the beginning of the team's long NVL journey to a championship.

The board brought in former basketball head coach Shellie Ferguson to share in the festivities.

Ferguson was in town this weekend for the annual Wilby Sports Alumni reunion. He comes back every year, but this time Ferguson, along with Bobby Brown and Ron Pugliese, were the Wilby honorees.

Ferguson is a 1961 Wilby grad, and he later coached the Indians to the team's best seasons prior to the 2012 championship. Watertown made the state tournament in 1967-68 with Ferguson as coach, and the following 68-69 season was the first for the school in the NVL.

You might imagine that the Indians were swallowed up by the NVL. Wrong.

"We were 12-7 that season," remembered Sean Butterly, who played on that team and who is now the board of ed member who helped organize Monday's event. "We beat all the Waterbury schools," he added. "When I saw that Wilby was honoring Shellie, I thought that we should do something too."

Ferguson received a tour of the newly renovated gym, and was honored for his role in guiding the Tribe into the NVL more than 40 years ago, finishing second in that initial season.

Make your plans: Here is a calendar item to plug into your smartphone: On October 13 you will want to be at the Washington Park House on Sylvan Avenue in Waterbury because after 2 p.m. it will no longer be called the Washington Park House.

Finally, after decades of service to Waterbury youth, the park house will be named for the long-time director of youth programs, Bill Tracy.

At a ceremony that day a new sign will be put into place and the still gorgeous building will be forever known as the William "Bill" Tracy Park House.

If you grew up on Washington Hill, if you came under the influence of Bill Tracy, you'll want to reserve that date. We'll have more as the event approaches.

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